Microsoft borrows Siri for iPad smack commercial

Apple's Siri is known for its occasional blasts of snark, but Microsoft has co-opted the virtual assistant for its latest Windows tablet commercial. Billed "Less talking, more doing" the advert - which you can see after the cut - pits Apple's iPad against an ASUS VivoTab Smart running Windows 8, and which unsurprisingly enough is found lacking in Microsoft's opinion.

The commercial kicks off with Windows' Live Tiles, with Siri conceding that iOS doesn't update its icons like that, and then launches into multi-tasking. The ASUS tablet is shown opening up a sidebar with a second app, again something which isn't supported on the iPad.

Then it's time for PowerPoint, since Microsoft apparently can't imagine a world where a tablet user might not want to throw together some slides. On the ASUS, the presentation can be edited and re-formatted, while the iPad is shown merely scrolling and zooming around in frustration. It's worth noting that Apple does offer Keynote for iOS, its own PowerPoint alternative, which does allow presentations to be created.

"Should we just play Chopsticks?" Siri concludes, playing out the advert as Microsoft reveals its kicker: how much 64GB versions of both tablets cost. The iPad - Apple's full-sized version, complete with Retina display - is priced at $699, while ASUS' Windows 8 tablet is $449.

It's certainly one of the better adverts Microsoft has put together - at least there's no random dancing like the Surface tablet commercials the company aired last year - and the use of Siri's voice (the actual audio files for which Apple licenses) is a sly touch that's likely to get the fans arguing. Still, Microsoft's decision to illustrate functionality with PowerPoint seems like a missed opportunity; the business-centric app has little relevance to home users.